Composing break beats??

A

Amsterdam

Guest
Greets everyone-

Looking for some information on composing break beats?
anyone have any good resources on the web or books?
I just purchased some fat equipment and slowing start
to grasp it. Anything will help!

Studio gear:

Akai MPC2000XL 32MB Ram, 4.5GB IBM SCSI DISK
Roland JP-8000 Synth
Roland MC-505 Groove Box
Tascam D1000 Digital Mixer
Lexicon Core 2 PCI Digital Recording Card
Event Powered Monitors
2 Technics 1200SLMK2 Decks
Pioneer DJM-600 Mixer

I think I have the equipment I need, I've never produced
anything in my life but I've been spinning breaks and
whatnot for about 5 years now.

Thanks
 
damn, just hire somebody to compose music for you....if you bought all that at once, it looks like you could afford it....
 
nice little setup ya got goin' there Amsterdam. u got the gear, but gotta work out where and/or how you want to go!?!
not sure of written resources ... but you have spun breaks for 5 years. so u know how to beat match. well, learn how to get a one bar sample of a drum beat, and learn how to sequence it into a pattern at the right tempo to make it sound smooth. then sequence a bassline over the top from you JP8000.
simple steps, cos u got a lot all at once. i got an A3000 sampler and a Nordlead2 both at once a few years ago. i didn't end up touching the sampler for 6months, hehe.

here's an idea of the concept of the journey to successful outcome ...
Identity ->Values ->Goals
I
V
Action Plan ->Motivation ->Outcome
 
listen the older prodigy (experience, jilted gen.) if you haven't already. i'm trying to make some breakbeat stuff too and i find it helps to have some inspiration or even some loops to "borrow". then again, you can get the drum loops from nearly anywhere.
how do you like that JP8000? i was thinking of buying one, or even the 8080. a nova or even virus might be nice, though. hope that helps.
 
yeah, yeah...i know. JPs suck- get something else. sure, i'd love a 40something voice supernova II, but my budget isn't allowing that to happen. maybe i;ll just have to get another job over the summer....
 
well how about a second hand SUPERNOVA I RACK? those can be pretty cheap if you find the right one. Good luck! ...
 
any suggestions of where to find one? i'm usually apprehensive about buying 2nd hand stuff, but it really doesn't matter. i just need some hardware- soft synths aren't cutting it for me anymore. thanks again for the help, mano.
 
no problem man, my pleasure :)
let's see.... ebay? maybe...

OR better would be to see the machines you buy... so try all the local music stores you have close to you.. they usually have a board with people's classifieds and such...


and maybe youll see a synth you like there, plus you'll get to try a few machines in the store itself.

One more thing.. if you are in america, do not hesitate to print the cheapest prices from online (for example music123.com has some of the lowest prices) and ask the local stores to BEAT the price! they will probably do so. Thats what I did when I bought my pair of 20/20bas biamplified studio monitors (speakers).. got them 30% off just because I've printed the price from the internet and brought th epaper in my pocket to a regular store :)

note: the above trick is for NEW gear, not used.
 
yeah, thanks for the advice. i checked out ebay as soon as you guys gave me that advice back in the onlineDJ forum, but all i could find were virus A and a bunch of novation bass synths. ton of tritons and ms2000s, stuff like that. all the fashionable/popular stuff. as far as shops, there is one place that only carries korg stuff and another that has assorted/misc junk for sale. mostly ensonique. i'll be sure to try the "ad matching" technique next time i go there though- hopefully it'll work and i'll be able to get something before the summer comes.

once again mano, you rock. keep it up.
 
some suggestions (resourses)

Amsterdam,

if its the composing info that you're looking for, here's what i'd sugggest:

there is a book (out of print, but probably available on ebay) called 260 drum machine patterns. Although it doesnt address 'techno styles' such as the standard house 4/4 or breakbeat style rythyms, it does provide an introduction to other styles, which you can couple with the standard 4/4 to make something much richer sounding.

in addition, www.dancetech.com seems to be a very good place if you are looking for that sort of info- just hit the forums!

well, good luck-
Lodger
 
thanks

thanks for all the info everyone..! very helpful, i'm slowly starting to grasp the MPC2KXL.. got some good drum loops going.. i've figured out that it is essential to have a vast selection of samples and drum kits before trying to making anything sound good.

I like the JP-8000 alot, i'm into tweaking **** real time and it is pretty simple with the 38+ knobs available on the front panel.
 
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